2019 – THE ANNIVERSARY SEASON

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FOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL AND FOR COLLEGEFOOTBALLFAN.COM, 2019 MARKS A HISTORICAL, MOMENTOUS, ANNIVERSARY SEASON FOR BOTH. COLLEGE FOOTBALL CELEBRATES THE 150TH YEAR SINCE PRINCETON (THEN KNOWN AS THE COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY) AND RUTGERS CLASHED IN THE FIRST INTERCOLLEGIATE GAME EVER PLAYED. WON BY THE HOST SCARLET KNIGHTS, 6-4, ON NOVEMBER 6, 1869, THESE TWO SCHOOLS OF HIGHER ACADEMIA IGNITED ONE OF THE GREATEST AMERICAN SPORTS TRADITIONS OF ALL TIME. SINCE 1869, THE PRINCETON TIGERS HAVE BATTLED IN 1,245 GAMES FOR A WON-LOSS-TIE RECORD OF 799-396-50. THE SCARLET KNIGHTS ENTER THEIR 150TH SEASON WITH 1,352 PLAYED GAMES SINCE THAT HISTORIC MEETING WITH A RECORD OF 652-658-42 HEADING INTO THIS HISTORICAL, ANNIVERSARY SEASON.

Ghost-like figures don the program of the next to last game 110 years later in the series that kicked off college football in 1869. Princeton dominated the series overall 53-17-1, but Rutgers polished them off 12-8-1 to end the series and move up to D-1A football.

NOT TO BE OUTDONE, COLLEGEFOOTBALLFAN.COM CELEBRATES NOT ONE ANNIVERSARY, BUT TWO SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES IN 2019. ON SEPTEMBER 8, 1979, WE VENTURED UP FROM OUR HOME IN NEW JERSEY, BIRTHPLACE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL AND ARGUABLY ITS GREATEST FAN, TO KINGSTON, RHODE ISLAND. VISITING MY SISTER MARY KAY ATTENDING THE UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND, WE AND HER BOYFRIEND GUNTHER AT THE TIME ATTENDED THE OPENING GAME OF THAT SEASON BETWEEN THEIR RHODE ISLAND RAMS AND THE FIGHTING BLUE HENS OF DELAWARE.

LITTLE DID WE KNOW THEN, THAT I STARTED A TREK LASTING INTO THIS UPCOMING COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON. URI VS. UD MARKED THE FIRST OF 586 COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAMES HEADING INTO 2019, MY 40TH SEASON SEEING AT LEAST ONE COLLEGE FOOTBALL EVERY WEEK IN EVERY SEASON SINCE (NOTE: STILL MARRIED TO THE SAME WOMAN FOR 30 YEARS, HAVE TWO GROWN KIDS, AND STILL GO TO WORK MONDAY-FRIDAYS). TAKE AWAY TWO TIES ATTENDED OVER ALL FORTY SEASONS, AND WE’VE SEEN ONLY 218 WINS LESS THAN PRINCETON HAS ACHIEVED OVER 150 YEARS! AS FOR RUTGERS, ONLY 66 FEWER THAN THE SCARLET KNIGHTS TALLIED OVER THAT SAME SPAN AND IN 110 YEARS LESS TIME!

The Rhode Island Rams didn’t chop up the Fightin’ Blue Hens as depicted on the Game Program on our first of 586 college football games. The Blue Hens pecked away at the Rams and all bur one other foe that season. We have a collection of programs from 99.8% of all the games we’ve attended.

AFTER THEIR GRAND OPENING IN 1869, THE TWO SQUADS MET AGAIN A WEEK LATER ON NOVEMBER 13 IN PRINCETON. THE TIGERS CELEBRATED THIS TIME WINNING, 8 “GOALS” – 0. DIFFERENT RULES FACILITATED EACH CONTEST BASED ON THE PREFERENCES OF THE HOME TEAM. A THIRD GAME WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PLAYED, BUT NEVER WAS, POSSIBLY BECAUSE OF DISAGREEMENTS REGARDING WHAT RULES WOULD BE USED. SHARING 1-1 RECORDS, THE TWO SQUADS SHARED THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OF 1869 “RETROACTIVELY”.

NOT TO BE OUTDONE 110 YEARS LATER, COLLEGEFOOTBALLFAN.COM WITNESSED A NATIONAL CHAMPION COMPETE IN ITS HISTORICAL FIRST GAME AS WELL. AT MEADE STADIUM ON THE CAMPUS OF “LITTLE RHODY” , THE FIGHTING BLUE HENS DEFEATED THE RAMS, 34-14. UNDER LEGENDARY HEAD COACH HAROLD “TUBBY’ RAYMOND, THE HENS WENT ON TO RECORD OF 13-1 AND DEFEATED YOUNGSTOWN STATE FOR THE DIVISION 2 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OF 1979.

IN ADDITION TO CELEBRATING OUR 40TH SEASON, COLLEGEFOOTBALLFAN.COM PLANS TO CELEBRATE ANOTHER MONUMENTAL ANNIVERSARY. ON NOVEMBER 19, 2019, WE WILL VENTURE TO RUTGERS FOR OUR ANNUAL BIG TAILGATE. THE OCCASION CELEBRATES THE 600TH GAME IN OUR COLLEGE FOOTBALL HISTORY. THE SCARLET KNIGHTS HOST THE MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS IN A BIG TEN MATCH-UP. MANY OF OUR FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS OVER THE YEARS WILL BE ATTENDING TO CELEBRATE WITH US.

WE INVITE YOU TO FOLLOW OUR CELEBRATORY YEAR RIGHT HERE. OUR SEASON KICKS OFF ON AUGUST 24. WE PLAN TO FINISH UP AS FAR AS POSSIBLE INTO BOWL SEASON FOR ATTENDING SOME OF THE BEST MATCH-UPS POSSIBLE AND FAVORITE PLACES TO GO FROM WEEK TO WEEK.

We celebrated Game 500 on November 21, 2015 when Rutgers defeated Army, 31-21. We’ll bring even more fans when Rutgers hosts Minnesota appropriately at the Birthplace of College Football on October 19 during the anniversary of the college football’s 150th season.

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